In the food industry, equipment such as for example processing lines and tools, needs to be disinfected in order to minimise the risk of microbial contamination. Microbial contamination can lead to spoilage of food products, reduced shelf life and/or food poisoning of the consumer. As a result, microbial contamination issues cost the food industry billions of pounds a year.
There are a number of conventional anti-microbial agents available for disinfecting hard surfaces, such as for example peracetic acid and sodium hypochlorite. Due to safety concerns, these anti-microbial agents cannot however be used within food preparation and processing environments where there is an increased risk of the anti-microbial agents coming into contact with food products. There is a concern that these anti-microbial agents may on contact with a food product enter the food chain and/or taint the food product.
Conventional cleaning chemicals and disinfectants have also been used within the food industry. However even after long and expensive cleaning cycles, it has been found that the background microbiological levels of the cleaned equipment remains too high and the risk of microbial contamination remains. There is also the concern that these chemicals may taint food products.
Other methods for cleaning equipment involve the use of electrolyzed water compositions. Conventional methods for producing electrolyzed water typically involve the use of electrolyte solutions comprising a solution containing a chlorine ion. When the electrolyte solution is produced through electrolytic oxidation, and by dissolving the chlorine gas in water, hypochlorous acid is generated. The resultant electrolyzed water compositions can be used for disinfecting surfaces, however these compositions contain free accessible chlorine (FAC). The level of chlorine containing salts in the feed stream to an electrolytic cell is selected based on the level of disinfecting required by the chlorine containing active species of the resultant electrolyzed water composition. Use of the conventional electrolyzed water compositions therefore produces, either when prepared or when reacted, a chlorine related smell which is commonly associated with swimming pools. There is therefore a risk that if these electrolyzed water compositions are used within food processing and preparation environments, these compositions may taint the food product produced by the disinfected apparatus. Current EU regulations require that in certain situations, direct food contact disinfecting solutions contain FAC of less than 20 ppm, which is ineffective at killing for example human food pathogens such as Campylobacter on chicken carcasses.
Campylobacter contamination is known to be the most common cause of food poisoning in the UK, causing up to 280,000 serious food poisonings and up to 200 deaths in the UK every year. Campylobacter can be found in poultry, red meat, unpasteurised milk, and untreated water. In particular, Campylobacter contamination of chicken is a major food safety problem. About four in five cases of Campylobacter poisoning in the UK comes from contaminated poultry. Although Campylobacter does not normally grow in food, it is known to spread easily and has a low infective dose. As a result, illness can be caused by the presence of a few bacteria being transferred from uncooked food (such as for example chicken), to ready to eat foods. Campylobacter contamination has a significant impact on the UK economy and it is thought to cost the economy about £900 million a year.
A survey of Campylobacter in chickens on retail sale was carried out in the UK between May 2007 and September 2008. The survey identified that Campylobacter was present in about 65% of the fresh chicken samples. More recent surveys in 2014 and 2015 have put the presence of Campylobacter in UK supermarket chickens at up to 80%. The surveys therefore highlighted that there are a number of Campylobacter-related challenges in the current food safety system. One of the main priorities of the Food Standards Agency is to reduced food-borne diseases or pathogens, in particular Campylobacter in poultry carcasses.
There is a need for a food-safe, non-tainting composition, for example non-tainting disinfecting composition, for use within the food industry which has improved anti-microbial efficacy, for example improved efficacy against food-borne pathogens. There is a need for a food-safe, non-tainting disinfecting composition which provides improved anti-microbial efficacy and requires a shorter and/or less expensive cleaning cycle. There is a need for a food-safe, non-tainting disinfecting composition which can be used to disinfect food processing lines and equipment in situ. There is a need for a food-safe, non-tainting, disinfecting composition which can be used during and/or between food processing. Standard electrolysed water solutions containing hypochlorous acid cannot be used, partly due to regulations limiting the amount of free accessible chlorine (FAC) in solutions used in food contact applications to below 20 ppm, a level at which it is ineffective, and partly due to its noticeable chlorine smell. There is a need for a food-safe, non-tainting composition which has reduced associated cost implications and/or environmental implications.
There are a number of plant pathogens such as downy mildew, powdery mildew, late onset blight (Phytopthora), Bortrytis and stem Bortrytis which present serious issues to farmers and growers. The plant pathogens may significantly reduce the yield and quality within a wide range of food or flower crops. In some cases, the plant pathogens may destroy up to 100% of viable crops resulting in significant financial losses. These pathogens are often highly selective and affect a very specific food or flower crop. The pathogens are also often very difficult to control in any systemic fashion. The pathogens can continue to spread throughout a crop even with regular spraying with conventional chemical pesticides.
A number of agricultural chemical controls which are currently used to protect crops against plant pathogens are highly toxic to humans. As a result, the grower or farmer must use additional protective equipment and/or wear expensive protective clothing and breathing apparatus. Furthermore, the chemicals may not be used beyond a certain time point in the growing season prior to harvest in order to minimise the risk of chemical residues being present on or in the crops at harvest. The use of these chemicals also has associated environmental implications. The current agricultural controls have come under severe regulatory restriction. Effective disease management options must also be economical. The cost of managing the disease must be less than the value of the crops to be harvested.
There is therefore a need for a biocidal composition with improved efficiency in protecting crops against plant pathogens, lower associated energy and cost implications, and/or reduced environmental and health implications. There is also a need for a method of treating agricultural crops which does not require any additional treatment apparatus.